Campbell River Rotary Clubs are joining in the fight to eliminate polio for the second time in as many years.
Both the daybreak and noon hour clubs are hosting a run, walk and stroll Sat., May 5 to raise money for the Global Polio Eradication Initiative.
This year, Rotary Clubs reached out to local schools to make the event an even bigger success.
Tony Fantillo of the Daybreak Club said Rotarians have made presentations to schools to encourage students to sign up and collect pledges in exchange for their participation in the walk.
The six kilometre walk runs from Spirit Square to Rotary Beach, before winding up at Spirit Square.
Fantillo said proceeds from the event go towards polio vaccinations, which are available in nearly every country to prevent the crippling disease.
“There are four countries left in the world which don’t have the polio vaccine,” Fantillo said. “They say one per cent of the world is left, so if we eliminate the one per cent, it’s gone.”
Nigeria, Pakistan, Afghanistan and India all still have cases of polio.
“We have to continue (fundraising) until there are no cases reported,” Fantillo said.
Polio is a highly infectious disease caused by a virus. It invades the nervous system and can cause irreversible paralysis in a matter of hours. There is no cure once the virus is contracted, which makes early prevention vital.
Registration for the walk begins at 9 a.m. in Spirit Square and the event kicks off at 10 a.m.